According to Nielsen*, 359,403 adult consumers in the Augusta, Georgia area use social media every month, an audience that continues to expand. As a result of this growth, social media has become a crucial part of local advertising campaigns.
Social media allows Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) business owners to continually be in front of their target customers and to stay top-of-mind. It allows businesses to communicate daily and be the first company on call when needed. Social media has become essential for marketing local goods and services.
The best part is that social media is free to use for both CSRA consumers and business owners.
There is no subscription service for social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram which, according to Nielsen, are used by 76.7% of Augusta area consumers each month. There are no monthly payments or premium memberships required to unlock more services.
Read More
Topics
CSRA small business owner,
augusta small business owner,
social media advertising,
facebook advertising,
small business owner,
small business,
twitter,
facebook,
instagram,
small business marekting,
borrell associates,
social media,
small business advertising
Augusta, Georgia area business owners are expected to spend $121 million advertising online in 2022. This, according to Borrell Associates, a company that tracks advertising expenditures across the country.
Borrell's forecast indicates that almost 50% of CSRA online expenditures will be in the form of paid search. The most recognizable type of this advertising is the paid ads that appear adjacent to the results of almost every search query on Google, Yahoo, and Bing.
Borrell's forecast also indicates that approximately 27% of online expenditures will be in the form of display advertising. This consists of traditional banner ads that appear across millions of websites and apps, including social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. According to SmallBizGenius.net, the average Augusta area consumer is served more than 1700 of these ads per month.
Video advertising in the CSRA is forecast to account for 23% of all online ad dollars in 2022. Like search and display, millions of websites can support this type of advertising. This includes sites, apps, and platforms like YouTube, Roku Channel, Hulu, Paramount+, and most social media sites.
The remainder of online advertising dollars is expected to be spent on audio advertising, including streaming sites like Pandora and Spotify; or email marketing campaigns.
So many Augusta area business owners are investing a large portion of their marketing budgets into online advertising because that's where their customers are.
Read More
Topics
millennials,
social media advertising,
online advertising,
digital advertising,
streaming audio,
borrell associates,
social media,
Streaming Video,
internet,
streaming media,
advertising options,
internet Advertising,
streaming TV,
SEM,
display advertising,
search engine marketing
Every month, 340,000 adults in the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) use social media, according to Nielsen. Seventy-five percent of these consumers use Facebook, far more than other sites like Instagram (also owned by Facebook), Twitter, Snapchat, Pinterest, and LinkedIn.
As a stand-alone medium, Facebook is used by more people in the CSRA than watch local TV stations. Only Augusta radio and local cable reach more consumers.
The large audience commanded by social media has attracted a significant amount of advertising dollars from local advertisers. According to Borrell Associates, a company that measures advertising expenditures across the county, Augusta area businesses are expected to spend $31.7 million on social media advertising, a 26.2% increase over 2022. The overwhelming majority of these dollars are being spent with Facebook.
Yesterday, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg announced the company was changing its name to "Meta". This change, though, only affects the name of the parent company. There will be no change to the company's brands like Facebook, Instagram, or WhatsApp.
How will this name change affect Augusta businesses that advertise on Facebook?
Read More
Topics
advertise on augusta radio stations,
best way to advertise in augusta,
social media advertising,
facebook advertising,
twitter,
facebook,
instagram,
borrell associates,
social media,
linkedin,
metaverse
Nealy 96% of Augusta area adults have access to the internet. Ubiquitous technology such as computers, tablets, smartphones, and connected TVs allow Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) consumers to go online whenever they choose, which, for some adults, is always.
The Pew Research Center, a public opinion research company, reports that one-in-three consumers say they are online constantly. A 50% increase from 2015. In total, 85% of consumers say they connect at least one time every day.
So, how are CSRA consumers spending all this time connected to the internet?
According to Nielsen, streaming audio and video content, social networking, checking the weather, and banking are the top online activities for Augusta area consumers each month.
Read More
Topics
best way to advertise,
CSRA small business owner,
augusta small business owner,
best way to advertise in augusta,
best way to advertise in csra,
social media advertising,
online advertising,
small business owner,
small business,
streaming audio,
small business marekting,
borrell associates,
social media,
small business advertising,
Streaming Video,
AVOD,
SVOD,
online shopping,
streaming media
Over 95% of Central Savannah River Areas adults have access to the internet, according to Nielsen. Almost 70% of these consumers spend more than five hours a week connected.
Nielsen reports that Augusta area consumers go online to stay connected to friends and family; research products and services; learn the latest news, and obtain directions to where they are going and know what the weather will be when they get there.
Here are some of the many reasons why CSRA internet users go online each month
- Social Media: 77%
- Weather: 60%
- Online Banking: 59%
- Maps/Directions: 50%
- Product Reviews: 48%
- Sports Scores/News: 43%
- Current Events: 42%
- Restaurant Reviews: 37%
- Real Estate: 19%
- Job Search: 17%
And, of course, there is shopping. Over the past three months, according to Nielsen, 76.7% of Augusta consumers shopped online for every imaginable product and service including, cars, golf clubs, office supplies, wedding rings, mattresses, tires, medicine, shoes, socks, and eyeglasses.
To reach local consumers while they are online, Augusta businesses will spend $95 million for digital advertising in 2020, according to Borrell Associates. Here is how the money is being spent:
Read More
Topics
CSRA small business owner,
augusta small business owner,
social media advertising,
online advertising,
radio advertising,
small business owner,
small business,
small business marekting,
borrell associates,
e-commerce,
social media,
small business advertising,
OTT,
email marketing,
email advertising,
ctv,
online shopping
In 'normal' times, Central Savannah River Area consumers would be expected to rack up $8.6 billion in annual retail sales. Of course, since the onset of the Coronavirus crisis, nothing has been normal.
But as Gordon Borrell, CEO of Borrell Associates, explained to members of the Augusta area small business community via teleconference, consumers are still spending. This, it turns out, is normal.
Mr. Borrell shared research from Ibis that demonstrates during every type of crisis, including depressions, recessions, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, and, now, pandemics, consumers still spend.
The business literature contains an abundance of examples of how continuing to market and advertise during an economic crisis can help a company survive and emerge from the episode even stronger than before.
CSRA small business owners who do continue to advertise and market, however, should consider modifying their pre-crisis strategy.
Read More
Topics
best way to advertise,
radio advertising,
small business owner,
small business,
coronavirus,
corona,
covid 19,
crisis marketing,
crisis management,
small business marekting,
borrell associates
Last week, Gordon Borrell, CEO of Borrell Associates, shared insights with Central Savannah River Area small business owners on the value of marketing to consumers during a crisis. A video replay of the teleconference is available by clicking here.
Mr. Borrell is the CEO of Borrell Associates. His company is one of the most trusted sources of trends and forecasts for local media today.
According to Mr. Borrell, despite social distancing and economic jitters induced by the Coronavirus chaos, consumers are still spending money.
He points to research from Ibis that consumer consumption continues in almost every crisis, including depressions, recessions, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, and, now, pandemic.
Read More
Topics
best way to advertise,
radio advertising,
small business owner,
small business,
coronavirus,
corona,
covid 19,
crisis marketing,
small business marekting,
borrell associates